What does celtic symbol mean

The designs can be seen in a variety of early Christian artwork and manuscripts with the addition of plants, humans and even animals in the art. Yet some historians believe the origins of Celtic knots could be dated right back to B. C although there appears to be scant evidence to back up that assertion. What we do know is that knot designs were used as early as the third century A. D and can be seen on Roman floor mosaics. Roman mosaic floor with Celtic knot incorporated into its design.

There are many similar examples. Further examples of Celtic knots can be seen in Ethiopian art, Russian book illumination in the Medieval era and Islamic art. One of the main reasons why it is so difficult to place a precise date on Celtic knot usage in Christian artwork is because the traditional culture of Celtic knots in manuscript painting for example was passed down orally; a lack of written records makes it hard to pinpoint the exact time when Celtic knotwork influence began to spread though it appears as if missionary expeditions ensured these complex knot designs made their way to Europe and the Scottish Highlands.

There is a theory among some historians that the pre-Christian Celts drew these particular symbols because they were not allowed to create other images; indeed, some scholars say the early Celtic religion was similar to Islam in that realistic depictions of living creatures were forbidden. As a consequence, this restriction may have given birth to Celtic knots in much as the same way as it did Arabic calligraphy. True knotwork; the term given to broken and reconnected plait work, began to be used in northern Italy and southern Gaul in the 7th century before it made its way to Ireland; it was also used by the Picts and Northumbrians among others.

As you might expect, original Celtic knotwork underwent assimilation and adaption with the cultures that adopted it. For example, Irish works of this era featured unending loops consistently whereas Roman and Germanic adaptations occasionally included loose ends. The famous Book of Kells has many Celtic knot examples throughout its illustrious pages. Yet the Celtic tradition continued in Gaelic areas as wealthy aristocrats paid for ornaments decorated with Celtic knotwork.

Most scholars believe that Celtic knots were developed for religious and secular purposes. In the Christian era, Bible manuscripts, Celtic crosses and jewellery were adorned with these symbols. However, historians are having difficulty ascertaining whether or not there was particular significance behind each complex design. For the most part, it appears as if the Celts did not have any special meaning for each design as they were typically used as decorations to fill empty spaces such as in manuscripts for example.

In the modern era, some designs have had meanings attached to them based on personal interpretation. Now, we look at some of the Celtic knot patterns and individual meanings. Knotwork Interlace This pattern is said to represent the interconnection of life and our place within the universe.

The pattern is also said to be representative of the Heavens, Cosmos and Water. In ancient Celtic culture, the spiral was a representation of the sun while a double spiral represented the equinox. Shillelaghs comes in different forms, as walking or walking stick with a length of up to cm, as a pure weapon with a mean and a concise length.

Irishmen carried the stick just about everywhere they went. Various groups or factions were always present at most social gatherings, and faction fighting was widespread until the famines of the s.

The blackthorn wood was available quickly and in large quantities; high hardness and stiffness species grew on each side of the road. Traditionally, the blackthorn sticks, whose thorn batches were left on the stick, smeared with whiskey butter and smoked over a fire in a fireplace. If you have an old bata or walking stick made of oak, ash, holly or blackthorn, you indeed have a real shillelagh. The shillelagh came to be regarded as a stereotypical symbol of Irishness in popular culture, particularly in an Irish-American context.

Other spelling variants include shillelah , shillalah , and shillaly. Celtic Quaternary knot simply means four-sided or four. Ah, I just finished this lovely blog post about the many different types of Celtic knots. Interestingly, the quaternary knot is a mix between the sailor knot, Dara knot, and a shield knot.

Technically you could make an argument for anything with four sides—even a Rubix cube haha just joking. The Quaternary Celtic knot is very popular with Celtic tattoos because of its diverse meanings. Depending on the era the Celtic symbol could mean different things. Another version of the Celtic knot with four sides.

Source: Wiki. There was often the relationship between the greatest Celtic warrior and the most powerful animal symbols. Animals were featured in Celtic jewellery , tapestries, carvings, clothing and anything else that you could draw on. The idea was simply a specific animal had specific virtues. In this case, the bull was strong, fearless and strong will. While Celtic men often would use the Celtic bull to ensue these attributes, it was also a sign of fertility for women.

A carving of a bull on a bed would represent stamina, and well I do not need to go into more details haha. While you might be drawn straight to the symbol of strength the Celtic bull also surprisingly was a symbol of wealth. The bull was a huge food source for Celtic villages and played a massively important role in the ecosystem. Particularly for men. Even on wall street, the statue of the bull has become an iconic piece. You would be correct they actually are both the symbol for strength, but they differ quite a lot.

Ailm represents strength, endurance and resilience. The triskeles , three-cornered knots, denote the three aspects of two people, body, mind and spirit. The two triskeles, joined together, show a circle, the everlasting circle of eternity. This is a great gift to give someone as it not only has a deep meaning but looks just lovely.

The figure represents two people, joined in body, mind, and spirit in everlasting love. It turns out the Celts also celebrated summer. While Beltane May Day is represented in a few different ways, the most well-known is the maypole. The young Celts would go off to the woods and select the straightest tree they could find. Typically it would be pine or birch. With much ceremony, they would cut it down, drag it back to the village and then erect it on the village green.

It is most commonly held on 1 May. About halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. If you look up Beltane or May Pole on Google just be warned that the rabbit hole goes quite deep. I went from lovely Celtic celebrations to all sorts of spells and mythology. But if you are interested in that be sure to look further into Beltane. This is an interesting Celtic symbol.

It is not spoken about that much online, but it appears a lot in everyday life. Probably the most noticeable being the Olympics of course! The Celtic 5 fold is also known as the Borromean cross. It is five rings arrange as four outer rings are joined with one central ring.

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